Florida Fish And Wildlife Conservation Commission Division of Habitat And Species Conservation Invasive Plant Management Section Upland Invasive Exotic Plant Management Subsection Yet another year!!!
Where we have been! What is new! Where we are going! Jackie Smith Biologist jackie.smith@myfwc.com 772.597.5462
Upland Invasive Plant Management Program The Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is designated by the Florida Legislature as the lead agency for... the purpose of controlling nonnative, upland, invasive plant species on public lands. Section 369.252, Florida Statutes
Basic Program Ideas: Regional Working Groups Set the Priorities Try to Make it Easy for the Site Managers Site Managers Are Still in Charge of Day-to-Day Project Management Funding Priorities Changed With Funding Availability Herbicide Bank to Help With Maintenance $1,000,000 for Melaleuca Management
Upland Invasive Plant Management Strategies Regional Working Groups IPMS PROJECT FUNDING CRITERIA Cost-share/matching funds available Target species with high invasiveness Current control technologies available Benefit listed species (plant & animal) Perpetual site maintenance by site management entity
Upland Invasive Plant Management Their Basic Ideas: Contractor (ideally ) visiting the site once or twice (cogon/skunk vine, etc.) If spp. need(s) multiple treatments >2 in a growing season, they can t do this! That s where we need your help! We d like to help you help yourself
Upland Invasive Plant Management Program So in FY 16/17 Over $17,000,000 132 Projects 227,204+ Acres
2016/2017 EDRR Projects 8 Projects 162.45 Acres 12 Plant Species
Upland Invasive Plant Management Strategies Herbicide Bank Maintenance of previous Uplands projects Any Lygodium spp. or cogon control Usually +/-$300,000 FY 16/17 $1,550,000!!
Old News TIERS - Terrestrial Invasive Exotic Reporting System Small, Large, EDRR & Special Projects New Request for Proposals for New Contractor List
Terrestrial Invasive Exotic Reporting System EASY, EASY, EASY (copy & paste) Send Projects Directly to Working Group Liaison and Tallahassee Once Ranked at the Meeting, Ranking Sent Straight to Tallahassee Projects Easily Made Into SOW s for Contractors.
NEW IN TIERS Weekly Progress Reports & Completion of Work will now be sent to site managers through TIERS for them to approve. The Contractor Evaluation Form will be completed on TIERS Contractor invoices will be sent to Tallahassee through TIERS
Small Projects Total PCL Area <400 Acres City County Universities Educational Value of the PCL
Large Projects All Other Projects Submitted to the Local Invasive Plant Working Groups (even if they are city, county or university)
New Plant List - An edited plant list has been made available to all site managers. - The list was edited to insure that all plants to be treated have up-to-date current control technologies (CCT). - If the plant has been removed from the list, it has been determined that no CCT exists for this plant. - Any plants in italics will only be treated on conditional basis. - Those plants must come with a separate management plan for that specific plant with information on how and when the managing agency will treat that specific plant in-house at least one more time (more often depending on the plant) after the contractor treats that plant.
EDRR Public Conservation Land Easy Site Access 40 Acres or Less Lygodium, Cogon grass, Skunk vine Local CISMA Designated EDRR Species (must be exotic to region)
Special Projects Any TRULY Melaleuca Projects Any Projects Submitted After the Regional Ranking Meetings Any Projects Requested by the Upland Invasive Plant Subsection
Upland Invasive Plant Management 17-Year Program Results Uplands Program (1997-2014) 2,730 projects on 632 + PCL $179 million expended $100 + million matching funds Personally I Think We are WINNING (at least a little bit)